Campus
ChatGPT should be encouraged in schools, says experts
- 2023-03-09
- Society
- By: Jemima BadajosEdited by: KOO Chi Tung 顧知桐
- 2023-03-09
Executives from local universities expressed their support towards the use of AI technologies in assignments at an AI summit, following a temporary ban on ChatGPT due to considerations of academic plagiarism in Hong Kong universities. The “Artificial-Human-Centred Summit” held at Hong Kong Baptist University on Monday, had academics gathered from different disciplines, including computer science, data science and communication. “ChatGPT can perform extremely well if you ask the right question,” said Guo Yike, Provost of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. Guo supported the use of AI in education and called for funding to help teachers re-design lesson syllabus. He suggested rather than doing an answer-based assessment, teachers can check the quality of questions prompted into ChatGPT. “Getting the right answer will deduct much less intelligence than asking the right question,” he said. Martin Wong Ding-fat, Dean of the Faculty of Engineering at the Chinese University of Hong Kong also believes that ChatGPT can be beneficial to students. “ChatGPT allows students to work on projects that are bigger because the smaller units are already available,” said Wong. ChatGPT, a free AI chatbot developed by research and deployment company OpenAI, works by providing detailed responses to user prompts. It is currently used as a feedback tool to create safe and appropriate AI systems. Hong Kong has invested in artificial intelligence in recent years, such as introducing an AI learning module in secondary schools and setting up an ethical framework for AI and big data analytics. In the Budget Address this year, Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-Po also announced the launch of a feasibility study for a potential AI Supercomputing Centre, which will be completed in 2023-2024. But the audience at the Summit also expressed concerns about the regulation of AI and whether it will overtake human beings. “The more …
HKBU Students Worry University to Follow CUHK and HKU in Requiring Vaccination for Hall Residents
- 2021-05-21
- The Young Reporter
- By: REN Ziyi DavidEdited by: Robin Ewing
- 2021-05-21
Hong Kong Baptist University students are concerned the school will follow the Chinese University of Hong Kong, The University of Hong Kong and Lingnan University in requiring vaccinations for hall residents. Many HKBU students are opposed to the policy and cautious about the vaccines. “I don’t agree with the compulsory vaccination for residents since it is a personal right for everyone to choose whether to get jabs or not. I would rather give up living in the hall if my university requires me to do so,” said Kwok Yuk-kit, 21, an HKBU business student who lives in the hall. “I am against such policy. Living in halls and attending universities are free for students to choose. Right now getting vaccinated is not necessary in Hong Kong, the infected case is very stable. I have lived in the hall since the outbreak of the pandemic, but I am still healthy and safe. Meanwhile, no hall resident is reported infected,” said Emily Ling, 22, a business student and hall tutor. The University of Science and Technology will require vaccinations or testing of all students and staff, not just hall residents. “As for (universities) requiring residents to get jabs, it is even more unreasonable. But if the hall could test each resident before check-in, that would be more acceptable,”said Li King-sang, 23, a business student at HKBU. HKBU saw 15 covid-19 cases on campus since September, in some cases causing classmates to be sent to government quarantine centres. “Getting all the residents vaccinated is not going to largely enhance our protection against the virus. The pandemic has been more than a year now, but no infection case is discovered in the hall,” said Ms Li. Vaccination rates remain low in Hong Kong. The government extended vaccine eligibility for the BioNtech vaccine to …
Hong Kong Police inciting "white terror" among student journalists and leaders
- 2019-09-18
- Politics
- The Young Reporter
- By: Anna Kam、Rachel YeoEdited by: Katherine Li
- 2019-09-18
Hundreds protest against suspension of Baptist University student duo
- 2018-01-26
- Society
- The Young Reporter
- By: Elly Wu、Raphael Blet、Yoyo Chow、Katherine Li、Rob McGainEdited by: Angie Chan、Ezra Cheung、Michael Shum、Michelle Ng、Wing Li
- 2018-01-26
More than 200 people participated in a protest at Hong Kong Baptist University at 1.30 pm following the suspension of two students, according to the University's Students' Union. After being accused of threatening the staff and using abusive language during an eight-hour stand-off at the University's Language Centre, president of Hong Kong Baptist University Students' Union, Lau Tsz-kei, and a Chinese medicine student, Andrew Chan Lok-hang, were suspended pending disciplinary procedures. The University's decision to suspend the pair prompted mixed reactions with some praising the University's decision and others criticising the University for not awaiting the verdict of the disciplinary committee. A group of counter-protesters who were seen brandishing banners labelling the student union "a gang" and accused some professors of supporting the students. "We are proud of being Chinese citizens and right now, it's a Putonghua-speaking world," wrote a banner. Both parties could be seen hurling vulgarities at each other, but they were quickly separated by the security personnel. John Tse Wing-ling, former Legislative Councillor and Associate Professor of City University's Department of Applied Sciences, marched with the HKBU students in support for elimination to the compulsory Putonghua policy. "If Putonghua is really going to be a fixed standard, then this standard should also apply to all university staff members, including professors," he said, referring to the controversial requirement. Tse did not believe that a certain language should be a parameter of whether students could graduate. "If you judge everyone on the same standard, which is their Putonghua proficiency, then the Chief Executive of Macau won't even get his job," said Tse. The former lawmaker criticised the university for making the suspension of involved students public. "It's the first time in 30 years of teaching that I see a Vice-Chancellor announcing student suspension in front of the press," …
A rundown of the recent events regarding the Putonghua incident at HKBU
- 2018-01-25
- Society
- The Young Reporter
- By: Yoyo Chow、Michelle Ng、Holly ChikEdited by: Michael Shum、Angie Chan、Ezra Cheung
- 2018-01-25
Two students at Hong Kong Baptist University were suspended on Wednesday after "occupying" the Language Centre. The incident happened a week after the release of the results of the Putonghua exemption test, in which 70% of the students who took the test failed. About 30 students headed to the Language Centre and occupied the centre for eight hours. Students' Union president Lau Tsz-kei later admitted that he spoke a Cantonese swear word during the exchange with an official from the Language Centre. The University described in a mass email four days after the event that the language used by the student was "abusive" and that their behaviour was "hostile". According to the mass email to all students, staff and alumni, two students were suspended from school "based on evidence currently available" because they "have been found to have conducted themselves in a way that made our colleagues feel threatened and insulted." They have been suspended from attending classes and exams but allowed to set foot on the University's premises. The University also said "their actions had also affected the normal operation of the University and seriously violated the Student Standards of Conduct." What is the Putonghua graduation requirement? According to the Language Centre of Hong Kong Baptist University, it is stated that all "undergraduate students are required to reach foundation Putonghua proficiency before they graduate". They can either pass a 3-unit Putonghua course offered by the Language Centre or take a 25-hour non-credit bearing course and pass a Proficiency Test conducted by the Language Centre. To be exempted from the requirement, students have to meet one of the following criteria: Non-Chinese speaking students Attended the Chinese Language examination in the Mainland or Taiwan Have attained Grade C or above in the HKCEE Putonghua subject Have passed the Test of …
Lifelong suffering of women in India
- 2017-10-25
- Society
- The Young Reporter
- By: Scout Xu、Maggie LiuEdited by: Lam Ka Sing
- 2017-10-25
Women in India suffer from violence throughout their lives, according to a veteran journalist covering the issue for years. The violence starts from infancy, from infanticide and infancy neglect to domestic violence, said Nita Bhalla, the chief correspondent in South Asia at the Thomson Reuters Foundation, in a forum of Hong Kong Baptist University today. Based in New Delhi, Nita Bhalla works as a foreign correspondent for about 20 years and wins an award for her coverage on human rights. Meanwhile, since females are often considered inferior to males, if a family can only support one child for education, the opportunity always goes to the male ones, resulting in deprived opportunities in education, said Bhalla. About half of Indian women get married under the age of 14, according to a government report, and the youngest was only aged 6, said Bhalla. After they get married, sexual abuse within the family, wife-sharing and domestic violence tend to follow, she said. Six out of ten men admitted they have committed domestic violence, including hitting their wives, confiscating their money and devaluing them, according to a United Nations report. At the end of her talk, she says because there are still many positive stories, she can recover from overwhelming frustrations after witnessing disasters. A famous case of brutality to females is the Delhi gang rape, in which a 23-year-old female student was raped by six men in a bus, resulting in her death and worldwide attention. Under social pressure invoked by the protests, four attackers were sentenced to death by the government, while one of them, who was under 18, was charged with a three-year sentence. "The death penalty can't solve the problem as we find in researches," said Bhalla. "Our main focus should on the change in mindset and how we regard …
Police cancel recruitment talk amid student opposition
- 2015-11-02
- 2015-11-02
By Jennie Tang A police recruitment talk planned to be held at Hong Kong Baptist University was cancelled after the Student Union voiced strong opposition. The Student Union said it welcomes the cancellation and it would act against any police recruitment on campus until the police apologise for their violent acts during the Occupy Movement. The student body issued a strongly-worded statement of disapproval last week after the university announced the police recruitment activity scheduled on November 4. "Students refuse to become part of the state's stability-maintaining machinery," the statement reads. Morris Chan Sze-ho, president of the Student Union of HKBU, said the police decided to cancel the event after the Student Union expressed their concerns through school officials. The police have not given any official explanation for the cancellation. Mr Chan told the The Young Reporter that the statement was issued because most of its members did not want to see police recruitment on campus. After the event was announced, a poster appeared on the school's Democracy Wall which reads, "There is no police, only public security". The latter is how the police are called on the mainland. During last year's Occupy Movement, the police used pepper spray and tear gas to disperse the protesters, most of them university students. However, some students do not agree with what the student body has done on their behalf. Fong Wing-yee, a final year student at HKBU, said the recruitment should be allowed as some of her schoolmates might be interested in joining the police force. She said the Student Union has been acting radically and the opposition fails to represent the views of all HKBU students. "The talk is not compulsory," Ms Fong said. "It is only for those who are interested to attend. Students can choose not to go …
No sex in the dorms?
- 2014-05-05
- 2014-05-05
Western attitudes add fuel to the controversy of whether sexual behaviours should be allowed in HKBU residence halls.
Be playful and make mistakes
- 2014-05-05
- 2014-05-05
Traditional Chinese-style parenting tells us to obey the rules and behave, but Mr Lawrence Cheng Tan-shui urged the city's youth to "be playful" in a commencement talk at the Education Studies Department. A Baptist College graduate, Mr Cheng landed his career in the entertainment industry since 1978. Described by the host as "a man with a young heart", Mr Cheng walked into the lecture hall with a crutch due to leg injury. As the principal of the TVB's artiste training programme, Mr Cheng said he always reiterated to his trainees the substantial value of making mistakes in early years. "It is my last advice to those who are about to graduate," he said. "Not being wrong does not mean you are right," said Mr Cheng. "Make more mistakes. Then you'll know more, and know better." He encouraged students to raise more questions, instead of passively receiving information from lecturers, authorities, among others in the outside world. When asked about his views on the current situation of Hong Kong, Mr Cheng first responded with a compliment to the student who had thrown him that question. "This may be a critical moment. Overall it does not look good. But let us take it as an opportunity." he said. Throughout the talk, Mr Cheng neglected addressing his own achievements, but kept reminding students that, "This is your era. And you should live your life on your own terms." Edited by Jessica Lee
Pro-democracy heavyweights drive the centenary debate
- 2014-03-17
- 2014-03-17
Two veteran legislators went to great lengths to outwit each other in a debate to celebrate the centenary of Hong Kong University's Debating Society Formally-clad legislative councilors engaged in a verbal showdown as they eloquently expressed their views on different issues and skillfully challenged those of others. The arena was not the Legislative Council complex, but rather the Rayson Huang Theatre of the University of Hong Kong, where outstanding past members of Hong Kong University's Debating Society returned to their alma mater to celebrate the society's 100th anniversary. On January 25, the Debating Society of Hong Kong University Students' Union hosted The Centenary Debate, in which past and present team members debated the motion "One should always express his or her affection verbally". The spotlight of the debate fell on the "free-debate session" where LegCo members Mr Ronny Tong Ka-wah and Mr Alan Leong Kah-kit faced off against each other. As they moved beyond the Legislative Council complex to a lecture hall, tension was replaced by ironic jokes about the TV licensing saga. "He (Leung Chun-ying) has an inclination to dislike HKTV but has refused to disclose his reasons for it. How can this be justifiable," said Mr Ronny Tong Ka-wah, representative of the affirmative team made up of alumni members. If one an inclination for something, he or she should express it verbally. Therefore Mr Leung should explain why HKTV did not get a TV license," added Mr Tong. Mr Leong, who was assisting his fellow junior teammates on the opposition team, echoed his opponent's words. "Regarding Mr Leung's case, of course he should explain verbally his reasons (for not granting a free-to-air license to HKTV). He is a principal official who is accountable to us, right," said Mr Leong. The affirmative team was eventually crowned the winner after …